Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a sharp sword to overcome human cancer . On May 25, the Dongguan Hospital Affiliated to Southern Medical University (Dongguan People's Hospital)-Dongguan People's Hospital Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) Project Treatment Center Building (hereinafter referred to as: BNCT Project) project work is progressing steadily Progress has been made, and the capping of the main structure of the basement has been completed. The reinforced concrete of the first-floor wall columns above ground is 85% complete, and the second-floor floor is 70% complete.

According to feedback on the progress of the BNCT project, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences has completed the overall design of the BNCT machine, and successfully completed the debugging, RFQ processing, and solid-state power source development of the ion source . After testing, the machine runs stably and reaches the treatment indicators. It is planned to be installed at the project site in the second half of this year.
There are also new developments in the preparation and research and development of boron medicine (BPA). It is understood that the Municipal People's Hospital, in collaboration with the Dongyangguang Pharmaceutical Research Institute and the Institute of High Energy, has carried out preclinical research on BPA generic drugs BNCT, and has been approved for the key project of the Guangdong-Dongguan Joint Fund - "Boron Drug Delivery Based on Engineered Cell Vesicles" Systematic Cancer Collaborative BNCT-Immunotherapy Research" supports the continued in-depth advancement of BNCT project research.

Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) is currently one of the most advanced cancer treatments in the world. It has the characteristics of high safety, precise positioning, and relatively low price. It is an ideal treatment for brain glioma and melanoma. Effective methods for treating tumors with no clear boundaries, such as , can treat multiple, recurrent, difficult-to-locate tumors, as well as distant metastases.
Its working principle is: applying highly targeted boron-containing drugs to cancer cells and retaining them, and then irradiating them with thermal neutrons to cause a capture reaction between boron atoms and thermal neutrons. The approximately 2.3 million electron volts of fission energy generated by the capture reaction only acts on cancer cells, completely destroying their genetic chain structure, making them unable to repair and die. However, the surrounding normal cells do not contain boron drugs, and in neutrons will not be harmed under irradiation.

In August 2020, the Dongguan Branch of the Institute of High Energy Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences independently developed my country's first accelerator BNCT experimental device and launched cell and small animal experiments. The successful development of this device has laid a technical foundation for the localization and industrialization of complete medical BNCT treatment devices in my country, and is expected to open up a new field of treatment of tumor diseases.
In January 2022, the Municipal People’s Hospital’s boron neutron capture therapy building project was officially launched. As a key high-level hospital in Guangdong Province, the Municipal People's Hospital firmly seizes the historical opportunity of a new round of high-quality development and will build the "D-BNCT Dongguan Spallation Neutron Source (China Spallation Neutron Source) "Neutron Capture Therapy Center" as the focus of future development, actively promotes project progress and accelerates the research, production and transformation of BNCT technology to improve the technical level and medical service capabilities of treating malignant tumors. The construction site of the
BNCT project is located in the Red Building District of the Municipal People's Hospital. The total land area is about 4,000 square meters and the total construction area is about 18,000 square meters. The building has a total of 5 floors (4 floors above ground and 1 floor underground). The construction content mainly includes the BNCT device area. , treatment area, postoperative observation area, examination room, cyclotron and radiopharmaceutical preparation workshop, equipment room, scientific research room and medical office room, the whole will be used as the main place for implementing BNCT treatment. In addition, the Municipal People's Hospital plans to build a Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) Research Institute, relying on scientific research platforms such as the Dongguan Clinical Cancer Research Institute to further strengthen the transformation of scientific research results.
[Reporter] Ou Yaqin
[Author] Ou Yaqin
Healthy Dongguan